Dumb question about oil changes?

[Filobeddoe]

OK, this may be a dumb question- I'm not sure?
I have a 2019 Lariat FX4 with appr 17800 miles on it.
It has been 12 mos since my last oil change. I have dealership do the "works" service which involves oil change, rotate tires, and do some basic checks. I use the synthetic blend that is standard.
The mileage I put on the truck in those 12 mos is, wait for it ... 800 miles!
The year before it was 1000 miles.
I plan to get an oil change every year.
Is this crazy or maybe a reasonable thing to do?
No towing. I know that oil breaks down over time, so it seems to maybe be a good idea?
Any thoughts?

Sponsored

 

[Stevedbvik1]

Yearly is a good plan

 

[ctechbob]

Certainly won't hurt it. Especially with what sounds like a lot of short tripping.

 

[theprinceofsnj]

The old school rule used to be every 3 months every 3,000 miles. My grandmother changed it in her 1972 VW bus maybe once or twice a year. She did oil changes more frequently when she got her 1993 Escort wagon. I do every 3,000. Since I've retired, that takes me about 3-4 months. As opposed to every 6 weeks when I was working. I'm about to hit 72,000.

 

[Muscleford]

I am retired so I don't drive much. My Ranger is a 2021 and will be 4 yrs old May 6th, I have just over 16,000 miles on it and I change oil every six months.

 

[Friday yet?]

With low annual mileage and short trips I'd do it every six months. But we all have opinions. Particularly about oil changes.

Maybe we should all offer our opinion as to oil type, best brand, along with best filter brand. Blow this thread right up here on a Sunday morning!

 

[Motorpsychology]

I am retired so I don't drive much. My Ranger is a 2021 and will be 4 yrs old May 6th, I have just over 16,000 miles on it and I change oil every six months.

Jeepers George, I'm retired and my '21 has 81,000mi. On the other hand we were only putting about 5-6,000mi/yr on the Mariner we just sold. We picked up our Ranger on May 5th- I wonder if they were built at the same time?
@Filobeddoe, yearly is ok as you are putting so few miles on it; every 6mos would be better, IMO. The acids and hydrocarbons accumulated in the oil will eventually cause sludge buildup, but, at ≤ 3,000mi/yr, you probably have 10 or more years before it becomes a problem.

 

[harringtondav]

Oil is inexpensive in the big picture. My standard response is use full syn oil, but at 1K mile change intervals it's probably not worth the extra expense.
The tire rotations are probably overkill. Recommended frequency is every 5-6K miles. But since with the oil change you are already 1/4 complete since the left front wheel has to come off.
...you could save a few bucks going the full recommended frequency.
No vehicle ever suffers from over maintenance.

 

[Grumpaw]

With low annual mileage and short trips I'd do it every six months. But we all have opinions. Particularly about oil changes.

Maybe we should all offer our opinion as to oil type, best brand, along with best filter brand. Blow this thread right up here on a Sunday morning!

Yeah, we could merge oil threads with air threads....what is the best air to put in your tires ???
Cold air, hot air, new or old air, air from high or low altitudes, free air or air you buy.....
Oh, decisions decisions decisions.......

 

[Frenchy]

Take time to open the owner's manual and go to the maintenance section. You will have two different schedules mentioned and when the oil should be changed. Obviously there's going to be a mileage part and there should be a time as well. As much as I would say yearly is a good idea, you might want to do it every 6 months. I understand that you don't drive and that will actually put the truck into a severe service schedule.

 

[RedDakooter05]

Usually every 6 to 12 months if you don't reach the mileage.

 

[JohnnyO]

Every owner's manual I've ever seen gives a recommended interval or at least once a year.
Since it's not driven a lot you can get more moisture buildup in the oil and synthetic is more resistant to that.
My mother is 89 and puts about 1000 miles a year on her car so I just have the oil changed every year at state inspection time.

 

[Filobeddoe]

Thanks to you and others sharing your knowledge and opinions! I've heard a few suggestions to consider "every 6 months" and can see the logic there.
FYI, I have been getting a dashboard message recently saying close to oil servicing... so maybe Ford agrees with that ?
As far as the manual goes, I haven't looked in detail yet. Kinda seemed that servicing is more based on mileage.

 

[RedDakooter05]

Thanks to you and others sharing your knowledge and opinions! I've heard a few suggestions to consider "every 6 months" and can see the logic there.
FYI, I have been getting a dashboard message recently saying close to oil servicing... so maybe Ford agrees with that ?
As far as the manual goes, I haven't looked in detail yet. Kinda seemed that servicing is more based on mileage.

If you live in a climate thats mostly warm n hot, 12 month intervals will probably be fine.


The oil change reminder doesn't actually scan the oil conditions, its just a scheduled based reminder going off time and distance.

Reset it, and just do the reliable way of writing it down. Windshield sticker or notepad.

 

[JimJa]

Oil itself doesn't "break down,' it's the additive package. Because the base stock in full synthetic is much better than dino or blend oil and there are fewer additives, once a year is fine for full synthetic, 6 months for blend or dino.

The most important thing is during the few times your truck is driven, make sure you warm it up completely. That takes about 20 miles. The water/anti-freeze will warm quickly, but the engine oil, transmission and diffs will take longer, particularly in winter.

You might consider adding injector cleaner and fuel stablizer at each fill up ... and keep your tank topped off to minimize the air void in the tank. The air will have moisture and for as little as you drive your truck it's a good practice to keep it topped off.

Sponsored